Demountable-rim fastener



P. 0. WITTE.

DEMOUNTABLE RIM FASTENER.

APPLICATION FlLED JULY 9.1920.

1 89,410. PatentedAug. 30,1921.

' To all whom it may concern:

PAUL O. WITTE, 0F MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

DEMOUNTABLE-RIM FASTENER.

Be it known that I, PAUL-O-WITTE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Minneapolis, in the county of Hennepinand State of Minnesota, have invented certain. new and useful Improvements in Demountableliim Fasteners; and I do hereby declare the following to .be a full, clear,

and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention has for'its object to provide an improved fastener for the demountable rims of automobile wheels; and,-to this end, my invention consists ofthe novel devicesand combinations of devices hereinafter described and pointed out in the claims.

vMy invention, in its preferred form, is

illustrated in the accompanying drawings,

wherein like notations refer to like parts throughout the several views.

In said drawings, -F1gure 1 1s a view in side elevation showing a wheel having embodied therein my improved fastener, with the latter in its rim-securing position;

Fig. 2 is a detail in side elevation showing some of the parts illustrated in Fig. 1, on a larger scale;

Fig. 3 is a vertical cross section on the line 33 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 4 is a vertical cross section on the line 44: of Fig. 1.

The numeral 5 represents the body of the wheel, of the standard or any suitable structure, with the exception that the felly band 6 is shown as provided with only one of its flanges 7 formed integral therewith, to wit:

the one which serves as theinner flange of .saidfelly band. The numeral 8 represents a demountable rim, of the usual structure, with outwardly inclined; slightly curved flanges 9 in which the tire 10 is seated in the usual way. i To the outerprofile face of of the wheel felly, are'removably secured a suitable number of retaining lugs, circumferentially spaced apart from each other at uniform distancess ix as shown-four of which arefmarked with the numeral llvand two'of which'are marked, respectively, 11

and 11 to distinguish the same from each otherand the other four. A1l 'ofthese retaining lugs are radially disposed and rabbeted, at their outer end portions, on their Specification of Letters Patent. Patented A g. Application filerl JIIIY 9, 1920. Serial N0. 394,993.

1 body flange faces to afford seats 12 for the vertical or I of my split fastening ring l3, behind the outwardly projecting laterally offset ends of said retaining lugs, when the fastening ring is in working position.

only to afford said body or vertical flange adapted to be seated behind the outer ends of the retaining lugs, but to also afford an outwardly inclined clamping flange, adapted to engage with the demountable rim 8 at the corner between its body and its outer flange, with a wedging action, when the fastening ring is in its working position, and thereby hold the rim 8 in its working position properly seated on the felly of the wheel 5.

The said fastening ring 13 is provided with a suitable number of notches 13 for passing the projecting ends of the retaining lugs, when the ring is being placed into working position or removed therefrom, these notches 13 being the same in number as the number of retaining lugs and spaced apart at the same circumferential distances. One of the retaining lugs, towit: the one marked 11, is radially shouldered; or, otherwise stated, the seat 12 for the vertical or body flange of the ring 13 does not extend throughout the full circumferential length of the lug ll thereby affording a stop sur- 1 face against which one endof the split ring 18 may be made to abut, as shown in F igs. '1 and 2, when the ring is in its fastening position. The other or opposite end of the in the proper one ofthese two manipulations of said lever 15, the split ring 13 can also be expanded radially outward so as topro- .duce a wedging engagement between the flaring flange of thesplit ring and the outer flaring flange of the demountable rim 8. The other of the two especially distinguished retaining lugs, to wit: the one marked 11", and the vertical or body flange of the ring 13 are adapted to be locked tofastening ring 13' is of such structure as not gether by the outer end portion of a locking pin 17 carried horizontally in the telly of the wheel 5, at the proper point for the purpose; and which pin is pivotally connected at its inner end to the crank pin 18 of a crank disk 19 seated in a recess 20 of the wheel felly provided with a stem 21 radially disposed in the wheel telly with its projecting end passing inward through the telly and provided with an angular head 22 suitable for the application of a wrench. The lock pin 17 is of such length that, when retracted to its limit, its free end will stand inward of the body or vertical flange of the fastening ring 13, in position to pass outward through registering holes in the said flange of said ring and the projecting end of the special retaining lug 11 to lock the said parts together, as clearly shown in Fig. 3.

The structure being as above described, let it be assumed that the demountable rim 8 and its tire 10 have been properly positioned on the telly of the wheel 5. Then the split fastening ring 13 is so positioned by hand, that its notches 13 will pass the projecting ends of the retaining lugs, by lateral motion of the retaining ring inward crosswise of the wheel, and the body flange of the ring 13 be thereby made to engage behind the projecting ends of all of the retaining lugs. Then, by the proper manipulation of the hand lever 15, the fastening ring may be moved circinnferentially in the proper direction to make the untootlied end thereof come up against the stop surface-of the special lug 11 as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, in which position the notches 13 will have passed out of registration with the retaining lugs, and, at the limit of this sliding motion of the ring 13, the eccentric portion of the toothed head of the lever 15 will have been brought into action on the rack, at the highest point of said heads eccentric throw, and will thereby have expanded the ring so as to wedge its flaring flange tightly into contact with the adjacent flange of the demountable rim 8, thereby tightly clamping said parts in their proper working position on the wheel 5. Then, when this has been brought about, by the manipulation of said hand lever 15, a wrench is applied to the headed stem of the crank disk 19 and thelatter moved in the proper direction to force the locking pin 17 outward, so that its free end will project through the then registering holes of the body flange of the ring 13 and the projecting end portion of the other specially distinguished retaining lug 11*, as shown in Fig. 3, thereby securely locking all of the parts in their rim-securing position. I

When it is desired to remove the demountable rim 8 and tire 10, the locking pin 17 is retracted into its unlocking position by the application of the wrench to the headed stem 19; and then, by the proper Inanipulation of the hand lever 15, the mug will first be releasedirom its rim clamp ing position and then slid circumferentially in the opposite direction, so as thereby to bring its notches 13 into registration with the retaining lugs, whereupon the ring can be removed laterally over the lugs, and the demountable rim 8, with its tire 10, removed from the wheel 5.

lVhat I claim is V 1. The combination with a wheel felly and a demountable rim, of spaced retaining lugs secured to said felly provided with laterally offset outwardly projecting ends, a laterally removable split fastening ring having a vertical body flange adapted to engage behind the said offset projecting ends of said lugs and provided with a flange adapted to engage with the adjacent flange of the demountable rim, under a wedging action when expanded to its limit, and means for expanding and locking said ring in its rim-clamping position, substantially as described.

2. The combination with a wheel felly and a demountable rim, of retaining lugs secured to said telly and having laterally otl set outwardly projecting ends, a split fastening ring having a vertical body flange provided with notches adapted to pass said retaining lugs, by lateral motion of the ring, when the notches are in registration therewith, and which body flange is adapted to engage behind the offset ends of said lugs, when the ring is circumferentially moved far enough to throw said notches out of registration with said lugs, and which ring is provided with an outwardly flaring or inclined flange adapted to overlap the outer flange of the demountable rim and engage therewith with a wedging action when expanded, and means carried by the wheel for expanding said ring and locking the same in its expanded position, substantially as described.

The combination with a wheel felly and a demountable rim, of retaining lugs secured to said felly and having laterally offset outwardly projecting ends, a split fastening ring having a vertical body flange adapted-to engage behind the said offset projecting ends of said lugs and provided with a flaring orinclined flange adapted to engage the adjacent flange of the rim, under a wedging action when the ring is expanded, means for expanding said ring, and a looking device for securing said ring in its expanded position and which locking device comprises a locking pin horizontally dis posed in said felly withits free end adapted to project through registering holes in the body flange of said ring and one of the retaining lugs, and a rocking crank radially seated in said telly and having its pin connected to the inner end of said locking pin and which crank is provided with an angular head for the application of a wrench to rock the crank and manipulate the locking pin, substantially as described.

4. The combination with a wheel felly and a demountable rim, of retaining lugs secured to said felly and having laterally ofl'set outwardly projecting ends, a laterally removable split fastening ring having a vertical body flange adapted to engage behind the said oflset projecting ends of said lugs and provided with a flaring or inclined clamping flange adapted to engage the adjacent flange of the rim, under a wedging action when the ring is expanded, and ringexpanding means comprising a rack on the inner edge of a portion of the ring, and a hand lever with a toothed cylindrical head eccentrically pivoted to the wheel felly with its teeth engaged with said rack, substantially as described.

5. The combination with a wheel felly and a demountable rim, of retaining lugs secured to said felly and having laterally offset outwardly projecting ends, a split fastening ring provided with notches for laterally passing said ends of said lugs and which ring is provided with a body flange adapted to engage behind said ofl'set ends of said lugs, when said notches are out of registration with said lugs, and is also pr0- vided with a clamping flange adapted to be engaged with the adjacent flange of the demountable rim, under a wedging action when the ring is expanded, a rack on the inner edge of a portion of said ring, a hand lever with a toothed cylindrical head eccentrically pivoted to the telly with its teeth engaging said rack, a stop for the opposite end of retaining lugs to lock all of the parts inv their rim-clamping described.

6. The combination with a wheel felly and a demountable rim, of a plurality of spaced rabbeted lugs secured to one side of said felly, a split fastening ring provided with notches to pass over said lugs adapted to be disposed in the rabbets of said lugs adjacent the telly, a lug shouldered to form an abutment for one end of the ring with the same disposed with the notches out of alinement with said lugs, means engaging the other end ofthe ring to press the same against the said abutment and to radially expand the same, and locking means for said ring extending through one of said lugs.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

PAUL O. WITTE.

position, substantially as WVitnesses:

JAs. F. WILLIAMSON, CLARA DEMAREST. 

